If there was ever a marketing tool that was tailor made for the clean energy industry, social media would probably be it. Anytime you can create a marketing piece and get it in front of consumers without having to spend a great deal of money on printing and postage, you’re way ahead of the game. Such is the case with social media.

In the social media world, the “marketing piece” is usually nothing more than a simple post or tweet, the “distribution channel” is the social media site, and the “postage” is a keyword or hashtag. But, unlike physical distribution channels that often necessitate sending out hundreds or thousands of pieces to get a single inquiry, consumers of social media content have actively searched for that content by searching on a specific keyword or hashtag. These inbound leads are very highly qualified.

Another phenomenon that makes social media an effective marketing tool for the clean energy industry is the ease with which content can be shared. Remember, your social media content is a marketing piece. When consumers of your content share it with others, they’re lending their personal credibility to your message – becoming de facto spokespeople for your company. Let’s face it, people are more likely to read a social media post that was recommended by a friend than a brochure they receive through the mail. They’re also more likely to forward it on to their own social media contacts – that’s how content goes “viral”. This can be huge for clean energy companies that want to expand their prospect pool beyond consumers who are already sold on the importance and benefits of clean energy.

Finally, using social media as a marketing tool enables you to be very prolific in producing marketing content, and extremely nimble in its delivery. Here’s an example:

Let’s say a credible news article came out about a recent study that demonstrates how economical solar power systems are compared to traditional power sources without sacrificing dependability. In a matter of minutes, you could post a link to that article on your social media outlets along with your own comments about the article itself and the study cited. While this example isn’t of a marketing message about your particular product, such a message adds to your credibility as a clean energy expert. This helps to create and maintain your brand image – an essential component of any marketing strategy

Watch for future posts on marketing clean energy on social media. Meanwhile, If you have questions about how social media can help with your clean energy marketing efforts, or other marketing related questions, contact us online or call 408-529-8325.

I just got back from VERGE San Francisco 2013 and I have to tell you, I’ve never been so excited about the opportunities facing the Cleantech industry. Styled as, “Where tech meets sustainability”, VERGE SF covered:

Food-Energy-Water Nexus

New Energy Systems

Next-Gen Buildings

Resilient Cities

Smarter Supply Chains

Sustainable Mobility

The morning consisted of fast-paced main tent presentations by big names in Cleantech, while the afternoon contained more in-depth breakout sessions on the topics above. I mostly attended breakouts in the New Energy Systems and Next-Gen Buildings tracks, but I also attended some from the Sustainable Mobility and Food-Energy-Water Nexus track.

In the VERGE Interconnect Pavilion they featured what is believed to be the world’s first conference microgrid: an operational, temporary, and replicable microgrid inside (and outside) the hotel. The microgrid was powered by biogas and solar (in the street outside the hotel) and powered lights as well as charging an electric vehicle in the ballroom. An energy monitoring system provided real-time information on the state of the microgrid. It was an innovative and thought-provoking way of demonstrating the interconnnectedness of the many of the facets of Cleantech: renewable energy, clean air vehicles, smart cities.

Some of my favorite learnings from VERGE were:

Creative new approaches to energy storage are being evaluated for commercial viability across small to utility-scale markets. Chemical energy: No surprise, many companies are working on improvements to Lithium-ion battery cell technology as well as new chemical compounds for battery storage. Potential energy: Lifting loaded rail cars up a ramp is a an interesting variation on utility-scale potential energy storage which can be implemented almost anywhere, unlike pumped hydro. Thermal energy: Molten salt, among others. Mass commercial viability of utility-scale energy storage will be a game-changer.

Gamification is the secret to consumer behavior change in energy efficiency decision-making. It”s not just about making information more available to consumers, but make it more social and competitive.

Corporate sustainability and social responsibility initiatives are becoming widespread, and moreover, a value-center for corporations due to ROI of energy improvements, increased retention of employees, improved corporate brand image.

Women in Cleantech and Sustainability (WCS) is a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the careers of women in the fields of cleantech, sustainability, and related “green” industries. WCS holds educational and networking events in the San Francisco bay area several times a month, and maintains a website and various social media platforms for ongoing sharing of news and views amongst its members.

I think it’s a great organization — so much so that I accepted a position on the Board of Directors as the Marketing Committee Chair. Ladies, do check it out at www.womencleantechsustainability.org.

Greenbiz.com defines VERGE as the convergence of energy, information, buildings, and transportation. The advances in mobile and wireless communications technology and “big data” storage and analytics open up entirely new possibilities to give users the tools they need to make smarter energy usage decisions — saving money, increasing convenience, and/or making greener fuel choices. I believe we’ve only just begun to see what is possible in these areas. Do I think the term VERGE will catch on? I don’t know, it might, but even if it only remains a term greenbiz.com uses, I do believe that the technology trends are real.

I’ve signed up to attend the next VERGE conference, Convergence Paris 2013 (no, not in person unfortunately) to learn more from the industry leaders in this space. I’ll blog about it for sure, so stay tuned!